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New Zealand makes PrEP available for just $1.20 a month

The New Zealand government has announced plans today to publically fund PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis), reducing the cost of a monthly prescription to just NZ$1.20. Previously a prescription of the drug would cost upwards of US$700 a month which forced many to import it from overseas – no simple task, and would still cost US$36 a month.

This comes after New Zealand recorded its highest rate of new HIV diagnoses in 2016.

“Providing access to PrEP for those who need it will make an enormous difference to those most at risk of HIV transmissions,” Dr Jason Myers, the executive director of the New Zealand AIDS Foundation, said in a statement, “It’s a giant leap forward for our ambitious goal of ending new HIV transmissions in New Zealand by 2025.”

PrEP has been backed by the World Health Organisation and is 99 percent effective in preventing HIV transmissions. Researchers have often pointed out that making the drug publically available would be more cost effective in long run as the lifetime cost of treating just one HIV infection can be upwards of £380,000.

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